For how long EU will be the international joke by Thanos KalamidasThere is a Greek comedy film from the 1960s where the protagonist of the film often slaps on the face a younger man who is always around; and of course every time the younger man asks why and the older man answers “because you are here.

Turkey playing power games by Thanos KalamidasTurkey was never the country used to sudden moves especially when it’s coming to long term foreign policy and that there is a definite and well planed geopolitical agenda the last century at least has been more than obvious to all the player

Erdogan's last chance by Thanos KalamidasRecep Tayyip Erdogan has won a third term but his grace period is over; now he has to prove that he’s ready to make the difference, to change Turkey into the democracy he’s promising for so long and that he’s going to give an end

When Erdogan realized the cost of breeding in Northern Cyprus by Thanos KalamidasIt was in the Turkish papers in the beginning and the Cypriot papers after but it saw very little in the mainstream European media even though it was the first honest declaration of the Turkish intentions regarding Cyprus the last four decades and

Erdogan's visit to Helsinki and the Cyprus thorn by Thanos KalamidasThe Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is touring around Europe waving the results of the latest referendum in Turkey and expecting the European to reward his effect for a change with promises for a future EU full membership. That’s

Cyprus historic ironies by Thanos KalamidasIt is definitely heartbreaking to see a nation celebrating its 50 years of independence while a part of this nation is under a 36-year heavy fog and the people divided - oddly the very same people who fought together for this independence - and wi

A flotilla of politics as usual by Thanos KalamidasThe Gaza flotilla made it to the headlines once again only this time for a different reason, the United Nations decided to launch a panel that will investigate the incident which left nine people dead and the surprise came from Israel that announc

Erdogan; the new hero of Islamic world by Kourosh ZiabariThe Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stirred up international appreciation after he courageously blasted the Tel Aviv leaders for the bloody massacre of the peace activists aboard the Freedom Flotilla convoy of humanitarian aids whi

American-Turkish relations and EU in the middle by Thanos KalamidasWaiting for Turkey to vote against new sanctions on Iran in the UN Security Council Robert Gates, the US defence secretary did the most unexpected comment blaming European Union’s rejection to the country as the reasoning for this negative v

A two ways insult by Thanos KalamidasProbably the wrong person but Angela Merkel said to Recep Tayyip Erdogan exactly what the rest of Europe wants to say but is not ready to say yet. Angela Merkel said to the Turkish Prime Minister that Turkey is not suitable for a full EU membershi

Turkey bulling immigrants by Thanos KalamidasIt’s always the same; the poor pay the crimes of the mighty and the powerful but the latest news show something about the ethics and the attitude of a nation that aspire to become full member of the European Union, a union that manifes

The dark side of the Turkish army by Thanos KalamidasThe latest economic problems of the European Union’s Mediterranean members have overwhelmed us so much so we have nearly missed what is going on with a Mediterranean candidate country and what is going on with Turkey this moment might not fo

Iran's Turkish advocate by Thanos KalamidasLiving in a world where everybody’s acts are questionable and their motives suspicious it makes you wander how suddenly Turkey decided to becomes Iran’s advocate regarding the plans of the dictatorial regime for a nuclear future wha

But ...seriously by Thanos KalamidasMystery still surrounds the whereabouts of the commercial ship Arctic Sea, and a lot of speculation and talk is going on. Including extended suspicions of piracy in the North Sea, keeping Russian and Scandinavian governments in alarm, and the Russ

Turkey, the secular schizophrenia by Thanos KalamidasTurkey is a very complex country, often with a schizophrenic complexity, and now it seems it has reached a critical point for its future with the help of a court case. A dramatic court case! A strange mixture of over fifty people, including retire

Europeans' reticence and Obama's involvement with Turkey by Thanos KalamidasWith a few days difference the American president Barack Obama emphasized the necessity of Turkey to join the European Community and that naturally makes me wonder how he would feel and react if in their visit to the USA the French president or th

Turkey Turns Away From the Future by Europe & UsUntil very recently, Turkey was an emerging economic success story; a role model for Islamic humankind. Today the country is increasingly associated with instability and uncertainty. Tension between the old, secularist elite and the Islamic-roo

Cyprus report by Euro ReporterThe European Court and TurkeyThe European Court of Human Rights has found Turkey guilty of human rights violations in two cases Greek Cypriots had brought before the Court. The Court unanimously ruled that Ankara is guilty of violating

EU's Regional Policy and Kurdish Question by Europe & Us The Republic of Turkey has a credibility problem regarding solutions to the Kurdish question. Accepting Kurds as interlocutors seems difficult for those ruling elites whether they are old-style Kemalists or new-fa

Turkish hopes by Thanos KalamidasPerhaps all these, often difficult to understand, actions of the Turkish establishment and their army will be proved constructive for Turkey’s future one day. Turkey today, whether they want to admit it or not, is somehow the continuation of

EU's Regional Policy and Kurdish Question by Europe & UsThe Republic of Turkey has a credibility problem regarding solutions to the Kurdish question. Accepting Kurds as interlocutors seems difficult for those ruling elites whether they are old-style Kemalists or new-fashion Islamists. Turkish governmen

Letters from Istanbul: Media, Turban and Ban by Europe & Us9h20. Phone’s calling. “Mr. Nonnenmacher? Hi, I’m Irem from the Turkish Daily News. I had to pick you up at your hotel. I’m sorry but i’ll be 10 to 15 minutes late. Trafic is horrible today”. Just time for a

Turkey: Karamanlis, Al Bashir and Alliances Of Civilizations by Europe & UsA visit to Turkey for a Greek prime minister must have been the most troublesome. In fact Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis was barely able to make the visit that had been announced in 2005. Or since 1959, when Greece's legendary polit

Repeating history with innocent Kurds by Thanos KalamidasThere is something going on at the north borders of Iraq that seems like nobody gives the necessary weight. The victims at the moment are between the innocent and they count only to tens and the refugees to just a few hundred but the situation is

Bulgaria's Turks and Turkey's Kurds by Europe & UsThe new leader of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) brought up the model of pro-Turkish Rights and Freedoms Party (RFP) of Bulgaria as a solution to the problems Kurds are facing in Turkey. That has triggered polemics, likely to conti

A Kurdish question mark by Thanos KalamidasFor a very long time Turkey has learned to play the card of the country at the crossroads, a country between east and west, between Christians and Muslims, a country between Europe and Asia. Turkey has often been neutral but has been equally of

Turkey: Article 301 Tales by Europe & UsWe have been talking about article 301 since the Turkish Penal Code (TPC) entered into force on June 1, 2005. Articles 159 and 312 of the old penal code we focused on previously. In a way, we are living in a “Turkey by figures.” Legal

Cyprus reporter by Euro ReporterThe Syrian BoatGovernment Spokesman Vassilis Palmas said on Wednesday that Cyprus did not wish for its excellent relations with Syria to be affected by the case of a ship sailing from closed port of Famagusta to a Syri

Democracy unveiled by Thanos KalamidasWho makes more sense: a president with a wife that covers her head with a veil due to her faith, or a president who often talks with god and this god told him to invade a country? I presume the answer is quite simple and to unveil the protagonists

Turkey part of us by Prof. Francesco TampoiaIn the past, Napoleon said that if the world were a single state then its capital would be Constantinople, the very cradle of Europe. Even today, amid the traffic-choked streets of modern Istanbul, among the high-rises, the steep alleys and the gl

One more name on the list of dead by Thanos Kalamidas A few months ago, I wrote a long article about the Armenian and Turkish dispute over the Armenian Genocide. Some of the information I used was taken from an article written by Hrant Dink, a

The ghost of a constitution by Thanos Kalamidas Six months ago, while the Finnish government was getting ready to take over the EU presidency, we often heard both the Finnish Prime Minister M. Vanhanen and the Finnish President T. Halonen emphasize in their speech

Turkey's freedom of speech by Thanos KalamidasHow odd is that? A member of the Turkish parliament, after a long speech full of threats against France, finishes by saying that by approving this law France proves that it lacks freedom of speech, while the same membe

The Armenian genocide by Thanos Kalamidas For centuries, Armenians and Turks, among other ethnicities, lived in peace under the Ottoman Empire and the Armenians were known as the "loyal millet". Despite other ethnic minorities and although Armenian

The case of Sibel Dinez Edmonds by Ergo te LinaSibel Dinez Edmonds (born 1969 in Iran) is a Turkish-American former FBI translator and founder of the National Security Whistleblowers Coalition (NSWBC). Edmonds was fired from her position as a language specialist at the FBI's Washington Fie

The shame is always with us by Ergo te Lina Mehmet Ali Birand’s text is translated from Turkish by Ergotelinen Click here to read the original Turkish text.

EU pause Turkey’s dreams by Thanos Kalamidas It wasn't a surprise for the ones who follow what’s going on inside the EU offices when the president of the EU commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, called for a pause in the EU enlargement after Bulgaria and R

Turkey drops controversial charges on Novelist by Amin George Forji Elif Shafak was charged for insulting Turkish national Identity A court in Istanbul on Thursday surprisingly acquitted one of the country’s best selling novelist, Elif Shafak , 3

Turkish thin ice by Thanos Kalamidas In international politics, Turkey seems to continually walk on thin ice and really tests the patience of all her allies. The American invasion of Iraq made things worse when Turkey refused to help, so the Americans h